I am looking at doing an over land trip for the adventure not interested on flying.

Starting in bkk to Laos then Hanoi to Saigon by train with some stops in Vietnam along the way to Saigon then back to bkk.

Some of my questions would be I want to enter Laos and Vietnam with out return tickets because I am not scheduling dates as to when to be a specific locations.

It will be from about the 21 December to the 4 jan

It is basically a trip when I get to a certain destination I get there.

Any other helpful hints as to really good bus service in Thailand Laos and Vietnam

I want to go VIP busses for sure

It will be for me and the family 3 with thai passports and me with my canadian passport

Also recommend a few good cities to stop in Vietnam for a night on my train trip to Saigon

And is it posible to get a train ticket in Vietnam that would allow a stopover at night and can continue the next day on the train ?

Thanks in advance any info helpful

To ad to my post I have looked on the Internet but am looking for some personal experience

Thanks

Best train info www.seat61.com Very good Vietnam section. The land connections between Laos and Vietnam are not easy. There are VERY long bus routes between both Vientiane and Luang Prabang into Vietnam but they are arduous, some as long as 24 hrs.+.. True VIP buses to the best of my knowledge do not exist. The buses are not terrible but just standard provincial buses with no facilities. Roads are hairy as the buses compete with tandem freight haulers and a wide array of other vehicles from mule carts to hay wagons.

In Viet Nam, I really liked Hue and Na Trang along the coast but a side trip into the Central Highlands is also worthwhile. There are some cave complexes such as Son Doong in Dong Hi that are spectacular. Also, if you get to Hanoi then at least a day trip to Ha Long Bay, overnight on a boat even better.

May I suggest that perhaps you are trying to do a bit too much for one overland trip, especially if kids are involved. Either Laos or Vietnam but combining the 2 is not that easy.

Vietnam is a varied and fascinating country from Ha long Bay down to the Mekong Delta and Cao Doc. December/January is high season there as well so some bookings in advance may be necessary...especially for good berths on trains.

Edited December 17, 201510 yr by dddave

We just had a report of a bus crash in Laos on one of these overnight buses.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/876508-bus-crash-in-laos/

I'm just back from Myanmar and would never even consider taking a night bus. Incredibly dangerous. And incredibly uncomfortable and inconvenient. Difficult travel times with some leaving at 4am, 2am, etc. It was so cheap to fly, I just got tickets for the long distance journeys. And my body was thankful I did! LOL Though I have heard the trains are OK in Vietnam.

I flew from Hue to Hanoi several years ago. My travel partners wanted to take the overnight bus. They were sorry they did. It broke down, rough ride, and a looooong journey. The difference in price wasn't that big of a deal. But yes, more for a family.

You'll need a minimum full day in any city just to see the sights. Hue and Hoi An deserve a full day each. At a minimum. HCMC and Saigon each deserve at least 2 full days.

Besides that, I don't see how you'll be doing anything other than sitting on buses. It took me a month to go from HCMC to Saigon. And I moved along relatively quickly. Though did see a majority of the country.

HaLong Bay is not to be missed. With travel days, etc, you're looking at taking 4 days to do this.

HCM city ( TP HCM = Than Pho Ho Chi Minh ) is the same city as Saigon;

maybe you are speaking about Hanoi and Saigon;

Only one day in Hue is a pity !

You need minimum 7 days in this city and the area ..( but not in december and January, see below)

Hoi An, ok with you, a day is enough;

and what about My Son ? and Da Nang and his marvellous museum, and the marble mountain along the sea between Da Nang and Hoi An ...

WilliamCave wrote : " It will be from about the 21 December to the 4 jan " ;

not the good dates for the center of Vietnam ( Hue ); it's raining nearly all the days and sometimes during many days without stopping .

For your holidays : 14 days, do as dddave suggests you; one country ; it's enough .

In Laos , never forget than the best roads are like the worst in Thailand .

About the visas, you can have the lao one at the borders

and about Vietnam,since the 15th of july this year, 2015 :

VIETNAM VISA EXEMPTION

Germany less than 15 days

France less than 15 days

Spain less than 15 days

Italy and United Kingdom less than 15 days

other countries ( Asia, North Europe )

http://www.myvietnamvisa.com/vietnam-visa-exemption.html

Edited December 17, 201510 yr by Assurancetourix

Thanks for the input

I am rethinking to do just Vietnam.

I have been to Halong Bay 3 times and Hanoi

So would like to concentrate on central Vietnam as I have read that travel could take time and more than I have .

Hue and danang would be nice from what I have read never been in the central region before

Thanks for the info

What place has the best beaches and historical area from the Vietnam war ?

Looking for the tunnels I have heard about

Thanks in advance

The most "famous"...or at least most visited!...are the Cu Chi tunnels, outside HCMC. It was OK. Combined with a visit to an interesting monastery. An all day trip. The tunnels were OK. I did just see this:

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/03/22/travel/cnngo-travel-ho-chi-minh-city-tunnels/

I loved the river trip up the Perfume river in Hue. Didn't really like Hue too much. Was hassled constantly. I loved Hoi An. Very touristy, but beautiful. I also loved DaLat. Up in the mountains, so cooler, and you can take motorcycle trips out into the surrounding areas and see all the veggie fields. Beautiful. An interesting town also with all the old colonial mansions.

Nha Trang had some nice beaches.

use only pre-arranged taxi in hanoi from airport, can find thrm online.

buses not great in vietnam, not like thailand. take train. once in saigon you may want to consider close side trips to dalat or mui ne on bus.

da lat is just beautiful esp as a family trip. town of flowers lake and mountains. everyones happy! lived there for a couple months. thais would like it.

mui ne more isolated type beach town. nha trang, did not like the city much but the beach is good for families. larger type beach city. bus goes in circle between saigon, da lat and nha trang. easy to get tickets.

get tickets in saigon near the park for da lat. never checked for a return ticket and have flown in several times. just not the way they are, more interested in just getting you processed and out the door.

do need to mention that the viet embassy in bkk had some inflated prices for the visa (main thing being they offer the express 2 day service quickly and abruptly and dont mention alternatives). nothings posted. and pricey. problem seems to be location specific to that embassy.

getting an invite letter online and visa on arrival has worked great. they dont clip you at the airport (at least not the authorities) and appear to follow regulations well.

youll need a jacket and closed ended shoes if your going to hanoi in the wet season from thailand.

watch out for the spitting!

Edited March 30, 201610 yr by fey

A while ago we bussed from Khon Kaen due east to Da Nang, which was OK (read bumpy but not dangerous), we were told that the more northern route to Hanoi was a bit more of a task.

 

Once in Da Nang we hired a bike and found the coast roads in VN quite good apart from a few road works.

 

A bit of advice..when you buy your morning breakfast baguette in VN, buy another one for lunch or you will be eating crappy plastic snacks all day, or starve. Also the coffee is dreadful, we ordered a cup of hot water and diluted the stuff.

 

VN is great.........Hanoi a little unfriendly, HCM city full of bloody tourists, but the rest great!!  Biking.... stay alert or catch the bus...traffic laws "might is right".